I had a post ready to go today about the extension (betcha' you're glad I didn't have that one ready yet) but the weekend threw me a curveball.
Saturday night - less than 36 hours after completing my prescribed round of antibiotics - a new infection came back and took me down. I was hit with it all - screaming kidney back pain, bleeding, pleading to god on the toilet - along with new symptoms like ferocious diarrhea, nausea and heavy fatigue (I emerged from the bathroom at one point and wearily announced to Angus: "This house? It's clean." He didn't get it. Obscure reference maybe.)
I stayed in the bath for hours Saturday night as the midwives had recommended bathing because it soothes the insides and actually encourages said compromised insides to wee. So I did. I'm a 33 year-old woman who kept peeing in the bathtub. I was hurting so much that I'm not even remotely embarassed, although suffice to say both myself and the bathtub had a good scrubbing down afterwards.
I went back on antibiotics and am doing better.
I headed into the doctor's office today, where I am on a new regime of antibiotics - this time for 10 days - to fight the infection. The doctor says this is most likely a new infection as all of the antibiotics we threw at the last kidney infection/cystitis would have killed it off.
They told me I would be prone to infections the rest of this pregnancy.
I didn't know they meant that I would be prone to infections within 36 hours of being off of antibiotics from the last infection.
I can't stay on antibiotics for the next 8 weeks, it's not good for me and not so good for the Lemonheads, plus at some point I risk building up a resistance to the antibiotic, at which point I'm fucked. I have to stay on treatment for the infections as I'm at high risk of pre-term labor and septicemia, and kidney infections are the Big Momma of bad news. I also worry about kidney stones coming back, as there's nothing in the whole wide world worse than kidney stones-apparently the top 3 most painful things a person can have is 1) childbirth, 2) kidney stones, and 3) slipped discs. I'm all about the overachieving, but I'm hoping 2007 isn't going to be the year I go all out.
What this all boils down to is this - Melissa arrives tomorrow and we'd planned a trip to Ikea this coming weekend with her to buy picture frames and a few odds and ends. We'll also be buying a crib after all.
Because now even though the babies' estimated due date is the 31st of October, I was told that with twins I'll only make it to 36 weeks, which is the week beginning the 1st of October. But with these kinds of infections I'll be lucky to make it very far at all into September. We're basically looking at the Lemonheads arriving soon. I'm pushing for 32 weeks. Let's try to get to 32 weeks.
They say the third trimester is hard.
They're not kidding.
We haven't really discussed if we'd tell the kids they were IVF babies or not, but it's not really important to either of us that they be told one way or another. I'm sure they'll stumble across paperwork at some point and have some questions, so we may be honest, I dunno. I certainly would never use it against them in a court of "you made my life a living hell". I don't plan on using anything* against them in that way because I've seen what that kind of guilt can do to a person. I may mention that carrying them totalled one of my kidneys temporarily, but I'd never point fingers (even though it's our son that's causing this. I can see I'm going to need to childproof the house from birth for him.)
Sorry about the bitching but I'm not very happy about the latest developments.
-H.
PS-Many huge, huge thanks to two women who I consider sister-types. To Margi, who along with her family sent the Lemonheads this rattle and this Rainforest Bouncer, which made me cry (in a good way). And to Caltechgirl, who with ZTZCheese sent a box (pics of the contents uploaded here, here, here and here). I love it all, the Lemonheads love it all, and you both made me squeal and cry. Thank you-I love you both.
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Still here with you all the way! I hope the kidneys keep working and the lemonheads keep growing! And bananas, yuck... I realised recently that my one year old had never had a banana thanks to my disliking for the yellow things, and guess what - she bloody loves them! Typical!
Posted by: Sarah at August 06, 2007 11:07 AM (69KUi)
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Hang in there. It'll be worth it when you get to hold them. And tease them about it later.
Posted by: Hannah at August 06, 2007 11:25 AM (RqLl8)
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I hope that this is the last infection for a good while to come.
Thinking of you
abs x
Posted by: abs at August 06, 2007 11:40 AM (pejJ8)
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It honestly never occurred to me that IVF would fall into the category of something the kids need to be told.
Me, I don't hate bananas. I *resent* them. I should not have to eat them, darnit!
Posted by: B. Durbin at August 06, 2007 12:52 PM (tie24)
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And the world thinks men are tough. Ha! Ha, I say. A man in this position would be leaping from a tall building, let there be no doubt. I'll keep my fingers crossed. XOXO
Posted by: gennimcmahon at August 06, 2007 01:09 PM (QqF9v)
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Hey, my old info is in the last comment. This one links my NEW info. Yeesh. I gotta get it together.
Posted by: gennimcmahon at August 06, 2007 01:10 PM (QqF9v)
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Hang in there, Helen. You have many challenges and later on, this will seem like a piece of cake. I promise.
Posted by: kenju at August 06, 2007 01:13 PM (DBvE5)
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Oh, sweetie. I had kidney infection when I was preg with my first child and can totally sympathize with your pain. Take care. Will be holding only good thoughts for you.
Posted by: sue at August 06, 2007 01:18 PM (WbfZD)
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Ah, you poor poor thing! I'm sending you antibiotic wishes through the ether (they don't make resistant bacteria and are very nice to bubs). Be gentle with yourself!
Posted by: WildlyParenthetical at August 06, 2007 01:39 PM (rG4u9)
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Oh, jeez, UTI's suck. I've been having those damn things for years. Lately, my pattern is get a UTI, and two seconds later, a kidney infection. Oddly enough, pregnancy actually made them better for me.
Anyway, try D-Mannose- it is a simple sugar that supposedly works by tying up the ecoli bug's fimbria so they can't attach to your bladder wall. Then they get flushed out when you pee. You can try taking what they call a maintenance dose of a teaspoon a day. HOnestly, for bladder infections, it's been incredibly effective, for me, maybe not so much for kidney infections, but the preventive effect may keep you from developing them in the first place. Best of luck!
http://www.waterfall-d-mannose.com/
Posted by: Allison at August 06, 2007 02:24 PM (/1SSa)
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1.) Poltergeist. (I still randomly scream "Run to the light, Carol Ann!")
2.) Bananas? Ew ew ew. You are a better woman than I am!
Posted by: Ms. Pants at August 06, 2007 02:58 PM (+p4Zf)
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I love bananas, so I ate them readily to battle the RLS. However, being prone to constipation anyways, and pregnancy making it worse, then eating a bunch of bananas? Let me just say it got so bad the last few weeks of my first pregnancy that I actually thought I was in LABOR from the cramps.
I feel for you hon. I hope that this round of meds does the trick. You deserve to sail smoothly to 35 weeks (that's what I am pushing for).
Posted by: Teresa at August 06, 2007 03:05 PM (grumk)
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You need a break from the various assorted difficulties! Good grief - it's been a rough few weeks for you. I'll be sending more nice, healthy, relaxing thoughts to you and the Lemonheads. I so want you just to be able to relax and nest and enjoy the rest of your pregnancy! I hope the visit with Melissa goes well; I've been thinking of her too and hope things have somewhat settled down on her end.
Thanks again for sharing as much of yourself as you do - I really feel honored being allowed to share a bit of your life.
Posted by: Lisa at August 06, 2007 03:14 PM (e8V7B)
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Aww, honey. You know I love you. And that whole end-game of pregnancy is fraught with - something. Never fails. I had only one pregnancy that was sanguine. I love that child so much, he'll never know!
As for the bouncy seat and rattle? Hey. We're all about the toys 'round here. And if they help you get a moment to yourself, then all is well. Babylove's bouncy seat had a VIBRATING feature. We loved it. All of us. Heh.
Posted by: Margi at August 06, 2007 04:16 PM (DwLKz)
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I've been out of the loop for a week, and man did you have a hell of a week. I hope you get the infections under control for good this time! Hopefully all of the hell you are going through now is because you're going to give birth to the worlds most perfect children
Posted by: geeky at August 06, 2007 04:56 PM (ziVl9)
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I know unsolicited advice is sometimes not taken well, and I'm hesitant to even write this, BUT I used to suffer from UTI's all the time and as a child who spend her entire childhood on antibotics ('cause I was the sick kid) I know what antibiotics do to the body. So....for what it's worth. (I also realize your kidney's are impacted upwards, where mine were not)
1) Cranberry Juice for the UTI/kidneys...unsweetened if you can handle it. There is some enzyme in the cranberry that helps with kidney infections.
2) Yogurt or yogurt culutres in capsules. It will help to replace all the normal/good flora in your gut after being killed by antibiotics, which you need to help fight off any type of infection. (My MD actually tells me to go the the healthfood store and get the capules if I have to be on antibotics as I end up with yeast infections in horrible places).
As a semi-tree-hugger I'm always looking for the natural way to treat. And, as a healthcare worker I know the nightmare of antibiotic resistance.
Anything is worth a try?
Posted by: Heidi at August 06, 2007 05:04 PM (VUXSB)
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It just gets funner and funner, huh?
Yes, funner is a word. :-)
Have fun with Melissa at my favorite store! I love their baby section.....
Posted by: caltechgirl at August 06, 2007 05:57 PM (/vgMZ)
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Heidi-I am indeed heavy on the cranberry juice and the yogurt (the ones with acidopholus in the ingredients list). Good thing I like cranberry juice and yogurt, eh?
Posted by: Helen at August 06, 2007 06:42 PM (R7xxp)
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I have read about this RLS cure and thought it might help you. Put the bar of soap under your sheet. It doesn't involve taking any meds and it can't hurt you or the lemonheads so it might be worth a try.
These are two excerpts from the web.
Ann Landers suggests this “cure”: put an unwrapped bar of soap under the sheets so that the cramped leg rests upon it (the soap can be kept in place by putting rubber bands around it and pinning the rubber bands to the sheet). Although there is no apparent explanation for this ‘cure-all,’ her readers swear that it really works.
?I have had severe leg cramps for years. When I read about putting a bar of soap in bed, I got a bar of Ivory and put it under the bottom sheet near my legs. It?s been a month since I did that, and I have not had one leg cramp.?
Posted by: karen at August 07, 2007 12:02 AM (3Bmm5)
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Karen— I don't know exactly why that may work, except that every time I get a leg cramp it starts with me stretching my leg. Perhaps the soap keeps you from getting to the critical point, and when it's unwrapped it won't chafe.
I've also noticed that now when I tend to stretch I only do the upper body. Damned leg cramps.
Posted by: B. Durbin at August 07, 2007 01:54 AM (tie24)
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Do you like avacados? Because an avacado has almost 3 times the potassium of a banana, plus a bunch of the "good fats", also, not a yucky banana.
Posted by: nightwitch at August 07, 2007 05:39 AM (dfTf5)
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Pommigranites are good for Potassium as are some of the 'health drinks' Like Ensure and Boost.. (which have a pretty broad range of goodies in a small amount of liquid.)....
Best of lucks.. I know what those #$%Q$$ cramps are like.. You ought to have em check your Magesium level as that can cause trouble as well...
Posted by: LarryConley at August 10, 2007 09:16 AM (Bazz1)
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